Midori the Rabbit
Chapter 9: The Anti Symbol
"Die!"
Bakugo shouted as he took down yet another henchmen. The fast rapid battle got his blood going and he was already feeling the high. Kirishima who got sucked into the vortex with him was steady as a rock, literally, in battle.
"That's all of them? They're all so friggin weak." Bakugo snarled in disgust. These villains were seriously underestimating them. They had the numbers, the element of surprise, and terrain advantage, but their combat levels were so weak it was pathetic.
"Alright, let's get out of here. Since we're still in USJ that must mean everyone else is too. I'm worried about our classmates, especially the ones who don't have as much combat strength." Kirishima clenched his fist thinking of how they ended up here. "On top of that we got in Thirteen's way and slowed him down. We need to take responsibility for our actions."
"If you want to go, then go by yourself." Bakugo argued, "I'm going to kill that stupid warp gate."
"Huh?!" Kirishima looked at him confused. "Don't you want to find Midoriya? Who knows where that gate might have sent her, she could be in serious trouble!"
"Shut up!" Bakugo glared at him. "That warp gate is the villain's only way in or out. I'm going to cut off their escape route at the right time. As for Usagi…." He whirled around snagging the henchmen that leapt to attack them by the head and frying it up like crispy chicken. "She might be a pet, but she's got a strong quirk and a stronger brain, there's no way she'd lose to these weaklings. I imagine the others won't have much problem either."
"Amazing react time…" Kirishima murmured noticing the subtleties in Bakugo's tone. He spoke logically when he needed to, and it showed he was more than just an overpowered berserker. Better yet, it showed that even though he was worried about her, he trusted Midoriya to look after herself. From what he understood that was a big step up for him.
"So go if you want to, I'm going after that gate."
"Wait, Bakugo! Believing in our friends, that's real manly. I'll follow your lead!" Kirishima, pumped up from his friends manly spirit, hardened his arms and crunched them together. He was fired up and ready to rumble.
Bakugo may not have known it at the time, but he'd made his first true friend then and there.
"Then stop your yammering, and let's go."
~USJ Square~
Turned out coming to help Aizawa had been a very bad idea. The minute they'd peeked over the the edge of the water bank, they saw their homeroom teacher get crushed under the hands of the villains.
His assailant was unlike any creature Izumi had seen before. It's pure strength was immeasurable, and even though Aizawa erased his quirk he kept crushing bones like twigs. He was naturally that strong, and could easily be just as strong as All Might in pure brawn power. His appearance sent shudders down her spine; black skin, a wide beak-like mouth full of sharp pointy teeth that spread in a permanent smile. Its eyes were like a doll's staring into its prey with soulless intent. The awful sounds coming from his mouth as he crushed Aizawa underfoot made her want to clasp her hands over her ears and cower back. The brains of the operation, a thin man with silver hair, called the creature Nomu.
"Midoriya…" Mineta whimpered behind his hand. "I can't watch anymore. We need to go…"
"Ribbit…" Tsuyu's eyes were teary and she sunk low into the water.
"Aizawa-sensei…" Izumi trembled, her eyes blank with fear. She couldn't think, couldn't move, could only just stare in absolute horror. What had she been thinking? They were just students, these were real dangerous criminals out for blood. They should get out of here, they should just leave and pray that the other pros would arrive soon to help Aizawa.
She knew that... and yet she couldn't find the will to move.
The warp gate appeared next to the thin man. Izumi's brain began to work again as she concentrated on them rather than the horrific sight.
"Tomura Shigaraki…" the warp spoke in grave tones. The thin silver haired man turned towards the warp gate.
Tomura Shigaraki... well at least Izumi had a name to go with the creep's face.
"Kurogiri… did you dispose of Thirteen?"
"I put Thirteen out of commission… but some of the students avoided being scattered, and I'm afraid to say one of them has managed to escape."
Izumi let out a small gasp. Thirteen was out of commission? These villains took out two teachers and no pros were left to help protect those that couldn't fight back. She glanced down at Mineta, the frightened boy cowering back more from the news.
"Kurogiri… if you weren't a warp gate, I would've crushed you to pieces!" Shigaraki threatened, scratching his neck in an obvious gesture of stress and panic. The more riled up he became, the more unnerved Izumi got. This was no time to be a deer in headlights. She slid backward with Mineta, gestured for him to move quietly so they could escape…
"Tch… we can't stand against a group of pros. It's game over. Shall we go home?"
"G-Go home?" Izumi froze and looked back to Shigaraki. Had she heard them correctly? Were they just giving up? After all the effort and planning and damage they'd done, they were just giving up? What kind of villains were these guys?
"Midori-chan, I've got a bad feeling about this." Tsuyu spoke openly.
"I'm not gonna lie, Tsuyu-chan. So do I. Let's get out of here while we-" she cut off as she felt Shigaraki's stare slink in their direction. She barely had time to let out a gasp before he was rushing them, his hand stretched out ready to disintegrate Tsuyu's face to dust. He stopped just inches before, and Izumi's heart started to rapidly beat again.
"Tch… you really are cool aren't you?" He glanced over his shoulder at the broken hero who glared at him. "Eraser Head."
His quirk… Aizawa has stopped the ability just in time. Izumi couldn't think, just had to act. She wouldn't let any of her friends die, not while she could still fight. She leapt from the water her fist raised up to strike.
"GET AWAY FROM HER!" One for All powered into her clenched fist, the surge seemed to spike all throughout her body as she screamed. "SMASH!" She felt the punch connect, and the force of the blast knocked thugs off their feet and kicked up gravel. Yet, somehow, her arm wasn't broken.
My arm… she thought with a slight smile… I did it, I finally controlled it. The smile faded when she realized her fist had connected, but with the wrong objective. Her knuckles were pressed into the belly of the Nomu beast, and he stared down at her with those horrifying eyes.
"Smash?" Shigaraki questioned from behind the beast, scratching his neck in irritation at her interruption. If he hadn't caught sight of her when he did, that little bitch would have sent him flying. "Are you a follower of All Might?"
Izumi trembled and her fist started to pull back. Her smash didn't hurt him. He was barely phased at all. Tsuyu's logic from before was all starting to make sense now. Nomu… this anti symbol as Shigaraki called him… was supposed to be the one to kill All Might.
Shit!
"Run…" she squeaked out. She turned around, her wide frightened eyes on her friends. "RUN YOU TWO!" She screamed as Nomu grabbed her by the hair and pulled her up by it. His other hand came around to crush her head like a juice box.
"MIDORI-CHAN!" Tsuyu slapped Shigaraki's hand away, her tongue stretching out to save her friend.
It was too late, Izumi thought as she stared into Nomu's open palm. She was going to die, she failed to protect Tsuyu and Mineta and was going to die.
"All Might..." Izumi whimpered and shut her eyes waiting for the crushing blow.
The front door burst open with a thunderous crash that brought everything to a halt. Nomu's actions halted, and his grip loosened just enough to let her hair slip out. She fell back to her knees trembling and crying. She slowly lifted her head at the sound of foot steps, her braid completely undone, the loose messy curls framing her pale face.
"It's all right now… I am here!"
The sight of All Might at the top of the stairs, brought relief and joy among her classmates. To Izumi, it just brought on another wave of fear. Why did he come here? Why couldn't he stay away? These villains were going to try and kill him… Nomu… this horrific beast was here to kill him!
All Might looked down at the square, his eyes immediately went to Izumi. The sight of her small body, bruised and battle worn, brought on a fresh wave of fury. His mouth, for once, unsmiling and his eyes shadowed by the hard lines of his face. He made an intimidating presence.
Before Izumi could even blink she felt warm protective arms around her, and she leaned into All Might's strong embrace wanting desperately to weep. Then just as quickly as it came she felt her feet under her again, and his warmth releasing her.
"Students, Aizawa is badly injured. I'm leaving him to you. Take him and make your way to the exit."
"All Might…" a single tear fell down Izumi's cheek. The hero glanced back at her, and reached out to gently brush the tear away.
"No tears, Little Midori. Everything will be all right."
"The Nomu… you have to be careful. I hit him with On-" she paused glancing at her classmates who were already gathering Aizawa. "... one of my punches that didn't break my arm and it didn't even make him twitch."
"Little Midori," his frown turned and he smiled at her with no fear now. It was the face of the hero she'd admired as a child, and the face of the man she'd come to love as a father. He raised his hand to give her a thumbs up, as if to say "trust me."
"Midoriya, let's go." Mineta ushered her. With a heavy heart Izumi hefted up Aizawa by his good arm and helped carry him off to safety.
~Todoroki~
After separating from Hagakure, Todoroki had made his way to the Shipwreck area. All he'd found were a bunch of half drowned thugs, and he had to smile at the creativity in their capture. Midoriya always seemed to have some kind of outlandish plan at the ready. Still that posed the question of where she was.
He toppled a little when a second sonic boom blast erupted from the square and his eyes quickly went to the source. Across the water he could barely make out a group of figures but couldn't quite tell who was who. That had to be her. As much as he would have like the shortcut, he wanted to avoid hurting anybody by turning the water to ice. He wasn't sure if any of the other students were in the water, and even though they were all villains and thugs, he knew using his powers would likely freeze them all to death and it didn't sit well with him. So he ran around, taking the long route… and collided into Bakugo and Kirishima as he turned the corner.
"Ow! Damn it you ice freak, that hurt! Watch where you're going!" Bakugo got to his feet rubbing his head. "The hell you running to in such a hurry?"
"Midoriya is in the square. It looks like she's fighting villains. Last I checked that was where the major bosses were." Todoroki told him hurriedly, brushing himself off from the collision.
"Usagi? Are you for real? What the hell is she thinking?" Bakugo snarled and sprinted ahead. Todoroki ran after him and Kirishima rubbed the back of his head shaking the cobwebs out.
"Oi! Wait for me!" He strumbled to his feet before running after them.
~Back in the Fray~
All Might had faced against many a foe, and aside from All for One who had ruptured his body this creature Nomu had to be the toughest opponent he'd ever faced. His hits weren't doing anything to slow him down, and the creature was lightning fast. Were he in his prime, maybe he could have taken him without much concern… but knowing he had a time limit left the situation dire.
He could only hope that Iida would make it to the school and bring reinforcements before his body decided to crumble and shrivel back to its weakened state. All he had to do was buy time, and protect the students...protect Midoriya.
Little Midori; brave little girl, strong young woman, and his chosen legacy. He had no children of his own, but had immediately felt a kinship with her. Her smile so sweet. Her tears so honest. Her courage so unexpected. He would protect that girl for what precious little time they had left. Whether he died today, or the next, or some time from now, he would lay down his life to protect this girl he'd taken under his wing.
"Your attacks don't work because of the shock absorption." Shigaraki boasted. Confident in their success, he bragged openly about the creation his mentor had so wonderfully bestowed upon him. "The only way to injure him would be to slowly gouge out his flesh… whether or not he'll let you do that is another matter."
"Thanks for the information!" All Might grappled Nomu around the waist and hefted him up. In one big twist he slammed them both back into a wrestler Suplex, the ground exploding around them and kicking up dust.
"All Might is amazing! He's the only hero who can make a suplex look like an explosion!" Mineta grinned, his inner fanboy coming out. "KICK HIM IN THE BALLS ALL MIGHT!"
"Maybe we were overthinking all this," Tsuyu said with awe wonder. "He's in an entire league of his own. He's just amazing."
Izumi suddenly halted mid-step. She bit her bottom lip hard as she felt it began to quiver. No one knew… no one knew but her. All Might, as wonderful and powerful as he was, was in great danger.
She'd read the news on her way to school this morning. All Might had performed hero work before class, saving three lives from a villain, stopping a hit and run assailant, and stopped a hostage situation. The reason All Might hadn't been in class, and the reason why Thirteen and Aizawa had looked so glum before, was that he'd used up too much of his time. No one knew of his weakness but her… no one knew his secret but her… no one knew just how much danger he was in BUT HER!
"Tsuyu take Aizawa…" She traded places with her.
"Um, alright… but- wait!"
"Midoriya!" Mineta shouted as she rushed back to the square. Izumi knew what she was doing was stupid, reckless, and selfish but she couldn't stop her feet from moving. She didn't want All Might to die! She wanted him to live! She wanted him to continue teaching her, guiding her, and just be around her for so much longer! She didn't want to lose him! She wouldn't lose him!"
She saw the situation, Nomu gripping him tight in his weakspot and dragging him into the warp. She felt the scream rip deep from her throat.
"ALL MIGHT!"
"Midori!" All Might looked up to see his young protege rushing back into the field. What was she doing? Fear and fury conflicted over her face as she leapt towards him. Her hand reached out ready to pull him from the warp herself but the shadow of Kurogiri loomed over her and she felt the familiar pull of his darkness dragging her in.
No!
"Out of the way, Usagi!" Bakugo shouted at her as he tackled Kurogiri and pinned him down. Surprise and relief washed over her as she fell to her knees and looked up at her childhood friend.
"Kacchan!"
The sound of crackling ice followed and Nomu became half encased in a shell of ice.
"I knew you'd be here, Midoriya… but I didn't expected to see All Might." Todoroki stood calm and collected, the ice projected from his instep was all it took to have Nomu's grip loosening.
"Todoroki-kun!" Relief swamped her and she had to bat away tears that poured down her cheeks. Kirishima even jumped into action, but missed his target as Shigaraki danced out of the way just in time.
"Damn, I didn't get to show off!" He landed smoothly beside his comrades and lifted his arms up in full defense mode. "Midoriya, are you alright?"
"I'm fine." She wiped at her tears again and smiled brilliantly at all three boys. "You guys are the best."
All Might pulled himself free and jumped back toward his students. Izumi was instantly beside him, her hand over his on the wound, his blood heavy on her palm.
"All Might, you're bleeding." She looked up at him with great worry.
"I wouldn't worry about him, Midoriya." Todoroki assured keeping his eyes on the villains. "The Symbol of Peace cannot be killed by the likes of them."
Bakugo made a tch, sound and pressed his hand firmer against the metal casing of Kurogiri's costume. Whatever was under it was the little bit of his real body that wasn't made of shadow and fog.
With his weakness exposed, Kurogiri was trapped under the dynamite palms of a fifteen year old kid, and it appalled him.
"Our fog gate has been pinned down, and from the looks of them most of them are unharmed. Children are so amazing, they're making the League look bad." Shigaraki spoke with a calm attitude.
It was his calm that unnerved Izumi. She held her palm that was now coated in All Might's blood. She couldn't help but tremble from the fear that still consumed her. Why… why did she have a horrible feeling just now? Why couldn't she shake off the insecurity and focus on the triumph of their situation. The gate was pinned down, their monster was frozen and twisted, and Shigaraki was left outnumbered five to one.
Why was he so calm!?
"All Might…I can't stop shaking." she whispered in admittance to him.
"Calm yourself, Little Midori." He tried to assure her. "Stay alert."
"Nomu." Shigaraki turned his body to face the frozen carcass of his Anti Symbol. In his mind he imagined the young boy holding down Kurogiri crushed under the pounding weight of Nomu's fists. The creature responded, sinking into the warp gate to right his body up. Even though his limbs crumbled off he regenerated with a sickening twist and warp of muscle and limb.
Izumi felt her lunch roll around her stomach and push up into her throat. The sickening sight both appalling and frightening. Todoroki too stood shocked, no one had ever been able to escape his ice before. The reality of that shock hit him hard.
"I didn't say shock absorption was all he had… this is Nomu's super regeneration. Nomu's been engineered to take you at 100% of your power. He's a super efficient human sandbag." The sick amusement in Shigaraki's voice just added to the appall.
Izumi couldn't afford to be afraid anymore. She grit her teeth and raised her hands in a defensive stance. Beside her she felt Todoroki fall into a similar stance, all young heroes ready to act.
"First off…" Shigaraki sighed and scratched his neck. "We need our gate back. Get it Nomu."
Izumi's eyes widened and she jerked her head around. It was like slow motion. The speed of the monster, the fear that swallowed her, and the scream that ripped from her mouth.
"KACCHAN!" She shrieked at the sound of impact, and moved to rush into the dust cloud, but Todoroki held her by the waist. "No! Kacchan!"
"It's okay, Midoriya!" Todoroki tried to calm her. "Look." He loosened his grip and looked to the side. Izumi's teary eyes looked down at Bakugo who knelt on the ground beside them.
"Kacchan? You dodged! Thank Goodness! You're amazing!" She leapt onto him and hugged him tightly.
"Get off me, Usagi! I didn't dodge! I didn't see anything, damn it." He tried to peel her off him, the fact she barely wore anything on her top half had his cheeks flushing bright red.
"What?" She pulled back enough to glance back at where the dust cloud was thinning. Nomu stood still as a statue, his eyes focused on All Might whom he'd sent right through a brick wall. "All Might?"
"Geez," All Might coughed and panted from the impact. "Do you not know how to hold back?"
"It was to protect my comrades, I had no choice." Shigaraki rationalized. "I mean come on, earlier that girl over there was gonna punch me with everything she had. Violence for the sake of others is admirable, isn't it?"
Izumi felt the eyes of her classmates focus on her. She narrowed her own. This guy's sense of justice was twisted and dark. Everything about him rubbed her the wrong way. She didn't understand his reasoning, his convictions, or his logic. She just knew he was evil, and he had to be stopped. That was that.
"It's three against five." Todoroki pointed out.
"Yeah, Kacchan already exposed the gate's weakness." Izumi agreed and took a deep calming breath sliding back into position again.
"With All Might handling the Nomu guy we should be able to back him up, no problem." Kirishima finished the thought hardening his arms.
"No… the lot of you must go. Run back to the entrance where it's safe."
"What?!" Was the group consensus.
"Did you forget, if I hadn't intervened you would have been in trouble." Todoroki reminded him with a scowl.
"That was a different story entirely, but I thank you Young Todoroki. Nevertheless I will be the one to show these villains what it means when a pro gives it his all."
"All Might wait," Izumi intervened grabbing his arm. "You're injured, plus your time's almost…" she trailed off remembering she had an audience. All Might took her hand squeezing it gently. Her eyes lifted up to his face, the green orbs going wide with admiration as he smiled at her. She felt such a calm determination around him, and knew she had to let him do this.
She stepped back from him, her eyes tearing as the hand that had held hers flicked a thumb up.
"It's alright, Little Midori… for I am here."
That's what he was saying without words, without a backward glance. All Might was here… and everything WOULD be alright.
"Go get 'em… My Hero."
Whew, these updates are starting to catch up to me. I really hope I don't fall behind. I've been bringing my notebook with me to work and writing on my breaks making sure I get the chapters down while they formulate in my brain. I'm not the best at writing the fighting scenes, I'm more comfortable in romantic drama but I like the challenge of the fighting anime. Hopefully you all are enjoying it!
Next Chapter: What it means to be a Pro
